


The Fangs of a Dragon

by UnnamedCheetahFaunus (Night_krawler88)



Category: RWBY
Genre: Anti-Faunus Racism (RWBY), Blake Belladonna Didn't Leave The White Fang, Closeted Character, F/F, Gang Violence, Gangs, Gen, Minor Character Death, Mixed Martial Arts, Multi, Other, POV Third Person, Romance, Slow Burn, Threesome - F/F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-30
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:08:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 12,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27795904
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Night_krawler88/pseuds/UnnamedCheetahFaunus
Summary: Yang's an improving boxer at her dad's gym, ready for her chance to compete in Amity Colosseum when it arrives in just a few months. The journey for Yang isn't quite done yet, and she knows it. Between warring gangs, active protests, and her desire to keep her dad's gym from getting robbed any longer, Yang does something that changes her course. Whether it be for better or for worse still remains to be seen, but it's a course that has lead her into the company of Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Technology Company.
Relationships: Coco Adel/Fox Alistair/Velvet Scarlatina, Ghira Belladonna/Kali Belladonna, Miltiades Malachite/Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee/Yang Xiao Long
Comments: 4
Kudos: 21





	1. Junior's Place

**Author's Note:**

> Hello and welcome to my first fic (in progress) on AO3! I used to write on Fanfiction, but after a hardcore burnout and deadly writer's block I decided to hang up the pen and chill out for a bit... That was 3+ years ago. I'm posting this first chapter to see if it generates any curiosity, my goal is to remain about ten chapters ahead at all times so I can make consistency edits and so on. If anyone with better knowledge of Archive's tagging system wouldn't mind helping me out with proper tags and so on, I'd really appreciate it too! So far I've tagged every character that's been either shown or mentioned... No clue if that's a good idea, bad idea, annoyance, etc. I could use help T.T
> 
> I've never spoken to this person directly, but I'd like to thank NaughtyButWeiss, their work inspired me to write again, and there are elements here that have been themes in some of their stories, but I hope my spin on things makes it unique!
> 
> Anyway, here's Chapter one of... Huh, I haven't even given it a name yet, oh well you'll see it above when I decide.

The city of Vale is home to some of the best fighters on Remnant. The abundance of people eager to take on the pastime of beating each other to a pulp for entertainment has become something of a national sport. Different MMA gyms have been created, each trying to push their own ideals onto their pupils to one day show their philosophy is best.

Of these many establishments is the Dragon’s Den, a gym focused on boxing and the ability to be able to take as much damage as you can deal. It’s taken time for Taiyang to get the gym to his standards, but his commitment to his imagined theme has served him well. The roasted almond bamboo flooring isn’t too vibrant that it distracts people from their activity but does give off the look that all who enter are walking above the dulled flames of a recent dragon’s breath.

The center of the floor space is dominated by six boxing rings for regular spars to take place. Closer to the side walls are areas dedicated to heavy bags, weight lifting, jump ropes, and any other small stations that could be implemented efficiently. These areas, instead of being floored with the same bamboo have marble with hard rubber mats to avoid any of the equipment falling and tearing a hole through the floor.

The entire front wall is replaced with clear glass, allowing anybody passing by to peek in and see those training within. Along the top of the glass that spans along the entire front of the gym are carefully placed tints to dim the sun’s rays to avoid anyone being unfairly blinded during sparring practice. Every aspect of the establishment is well thought out, properly earning the gym its place as one of the three most renowned in Vale .

The founder of this gym is Taiyang Xiao Long, a former street brawler who is planning on retiring from the active fight scene to focus more on coaching the youth that wishes to acknowledge his philosophy.

His two daughters have adapted two completely different styles of boxing, yet the two have made those styles their own. His oldest, Yang Xiao Long has taken to his philosophy well and her semblance is the literal embodiment of his philosophy. She is an ideal pupil and in his eyes, she will be the perfect person to take over the gym come to his retirement from coaching.

The younger of the two sisters, Ruby Rose is different in almost every way from Yang. She’s fast instead of strong, cunning instead of direct, and has always been viewed as an underdog due to her lack of mass and muscle definition. Despite her not adapting to his philosophy well, he loves her no less than Yang. He couldn’t be prouder of the two, and if anything, he hopes Ruby will secure a strong future in MMA and open up her own gym to compete with Yang - so long as their sisterly bond holds true.

In one of several rings carefully spaced out between each other Taiyang can spot his two girls doing some light sparring. Ruby is working on her speedy jabs and counter punching while Yang is doing her best to defend and search for a flaw in the speedster’s defense. The ring floor is a dulled shade of red that still manages to pop with the apron’s off-black color. The ring ropes themselves are multiple shades of red and orange that give off a fiery look to complement the gym’s name.

While the two of them could never compete with each other because of their difference in weight classes Tai finds it nice for them to see where they are lacking: Yang with her speed, and Ruby with her power.

“Stop getting impatient, Yang. Rubes is going to clean your clock if you don’t calm down and learn her rhythm.” Tai moves to ringside, climbing onto the ring apron to get a clear view. Ruby is going to town on her sister with rapid jabs that alternate between the guarded face, arms, and abdomen with superb form. Whenever Yang attempts to counterpunch she’s met with Ruby dodging out the way and going for a clean hit to the kidney. Tai winces at the kidney shot, recalling the many he’s taken over the years, but the fact that Yang doesn’t flinch too much at it leads him to believe Ruby is holding back on the fight-stopping punch.

“Easy with the kidney, Rubes. I don’t want Yang to go home and suddenly collapse because of it.” 

His warning earns a quick, single nod from the shorter redhead while the sisters continue their bout. The gym is quiet, aside from the impact of their punches. It’s an hour after closing but the two always end their day with a quick sparring session.

Satisfied that the two seem to be going easy on each other, Taiyang hops down from the ring apron and finishes the typical closing rituals to make sure the gym will be secure for the night. He checks the showers for the men and women, assures each shower stall and bathroom stall is empty. He checks the weight room, the stretching areas, and the heavy bags for any loose equipment. Afterward, he starts to secure his office and calls his two girls to lock the front before they leave.

“Love ya, Dad. I’m gonna stay at Yang’s tonight!” Ruby calls out to Tai without letting it interrupt her flow.

“Alright. Just behave yourself.” Tai chuckles. It’s a bit of a trip to the small town of Patch, and the ride over the bridge to get there is always lengthy. Whereas Yang has done her best to move out and get a small apartment in Vale so she can easily change clothes and do her other activities without much of a hassle. At least, that’s the answer Yang gave her father.

When the elder Xiao Long makes his leave and the headlights of his car can be seen passing by the front of the gym, the two sisters stop their bout to catch their breath.

“You got your ID?” Yang questions the younger.

“The one you had made for me? Mhm! This is gonna be so much fun! I’ve never been to a club before!” Ruby jumps in excitement.

“Relax. We’re just going to Junior’s… He typically doesn’t ID, but the VPD likes to show up unannounced, so better to be safe than sorry.” Yang begins to lead the two of them out of the ring while she continues to talk. “Rules of the club?”

“Don’t take any drinks from anybody. Don’t let my drinks get out of my sight. Don’t wander more than twenty feet from you, and um…” The redhead pauses and starts to bounce instead of walk while she tries to remember the last rule. “Oh! Ask you to take me to the bathroom!” The last rule, while seeming a bit obsessive was for a reason. Junior typically let Yang use the employee bathroom, which was free of any suspicious holes in the stall walls.

While Ruby had just turned 18 a few weeks ago, the drinking age in Vale was raised to 20 rather recently, at least outside of a person’s own home, leaving Ruby in a terrible middle ground where she can drink at home, but not experience the buzzing nightlife her older sister has come to enjoy.

Satisfied with Ruby’s recollection of the rules, the two grab a shower, change clothes, and opt to wear their matching jackets for the gym. Yang’s jacket is primarily yellow with the words “Dragon’s Den” spread from shoulder to shoulder along her back. Underneath the words is the outline of a dragon shaded in black that’s breathing fire up towards the words it’s resting beneath. Ruby’s jacket is practically identical except hers is crimson instead of yellow.

The ride to Juniors is roughly ten minutes, and Yang’s knowledge of Vale’s backstreets cuts down on the time significantly with her bike. Traffic is rarely backed up in Vale, and in rare cases, it is Yang has little issue with straddling the lanes to get where she needs to go. Her dad’s always disapproved of her method of riding her motorcycle, but Yang’s never once hit anything or scratched her bike even slightly. She’s always called it her Baby and treated it like one. On arrival, she searches for the small parking lot and drops her bike off in one of the reserved employee spaces - a perk of being one of Junior’s regulars.

The large, pink neon sign that reads “Junior’s” flickers above the parking lot illuminates the space well enough to feel welcoming. It isn’t the most prestigious club to come to, but it’s the one Yang’s grown to love as a second home.

“Alright, Rubes. Keep cool and have fun. Anything happens just yell.” The final, warming words are accompanied by a hard slap to Ruby’s back that almost knocks the smaller woman over.

“Ack! Will do, sis!”

As the two sisters enter Junior’s they’re greeted by the strobing lights and changing patterns of the dance floor. Off to the left is Junior’s bar where several of his men are active in keeping the crowd organized enough to maintain a walking space for his girls to bring out the drinks. Yang decides to check on Ruby before they go any further but the redhead’s eyes are completely lit up in excitement just from her first glance into the club. Ruby doesn’t get much time to digest the sight before the DJ lowers the music to speak up over the speaker system.

“And it looks like our favorite Dragon is back from the Den! This one’s for you, Yang!” Shortly after Yang’s favorite song begins to fill the club, starting with a nice, heavy guitar riff to mark the beginning of  **I Burn** .

“Woah… you’re super liked here huh, Yang?” Ruby questions, following when her sister begins to lead them both to the bar. “That’s so cool! Do they have a drink named after you too!?”

“She drinks a Strawberry Sunrise, no ice, and with an umbrella.” The voice originates from a gruff man behind the counter. He’s just as well dressed as the henchman but has a black vest on to allow the white dress shirt underneath to make his own colors pop a bit more by comparison. He also has a very well kept beard while the others are clean-shaven. 

He has already placed down a glass on the countertop and gives it a slide in Yang’s direction. Yang catches the glass just as it slides over the edge of the counter and takes a sip of the served drink. Mid sip she gives a hum of appreciation for the drink’s flavor.

“Perfect ratios, Junior. Or did Mel make this one for me?” Yang steps up to the black counter and stands despite there being a nearby stool. Ruby takes it as an offering for her to sit there and announces herself with an enthusiastic, “Two please!” so she can try her sister’s favorite drink.

“Melanie! Second Drunk Dragon.” Junior calls down the length of the bar. “Another one from your gym, Blondie?”

“Yup, but this one’s family. Keep an eye on her, will ya?” Yang drapes an arm over Ruby’s shoulder and tugs their head against the side of her chest while the redhead introduces herself.

“Ruby. I’m Yang’s sister.”

“Junior Xiong. Your sister here keeps the business coming. A crowd like this wasn’t regular for me outside of a Friday night. Consider yourself a VIP any day.” Junior turns around to start cleaning a few glasses that have already been set aside. On cue, a brunette in a white dress shows up to slide by him and place an identical drink to Yang’s on the counter.

“One Drunk Dragon, anything e-” The girl freezes after sliding the drink to Ruby. Their eyes locked onto the blonde that’s casually sipping her drink. “Why are you down here?”

“Yo,” Yang smirks at the girl who rolls her eyes. “How’ve you been, Mel? Where’s Mily?”

“She’s in the lounge stalling for you to get there. Did you forget you have a meeting today?”

“Yang,” Ruby turns to the fellow boxer, “what meeting?”

_ “Oh, fuck me sideways…” _ Yang thinks to herself before responding. “Just some business, Rubes. Prize money may pay the bills but I need something more steady and guaranteed, y’know? Hey Mel, you think you could keep an eye on my baby sis for a bit while I head upstairs?” As Yang shifts her attention to Mel, Junior steps into the conversation again.

“Go on, Mel. I’ll cover tables for a bit.”

“I suppose I can keep uh…”

“Ruby.” The redhead inserts.

“Ruby. I can keep Ruby company.” Mel completes the statement and offers the redhead a smile. “I’m Melanie. Melanie Malachite. Some call me Mel, others call me ‘that Malachite Twin’ and few call me a Spider.”

“Spider? That sounds so cool! How’d you get that nickname!?” Ruby’s immediate interest in Melanie’s introduction leaves a smile on Yang’s face that the two should hit it off relatively well, at least until she gets back.

“Alright, I’ll be back in a few.” The blonde boxer announces and makes her way towards the back of the club where a guarded stairwell stands between her and the supposed meeting she had forgotten about.

Despite her remaining calm on the surface, Yang could not be panicking more. What she said to Ruby wasn’t a lie by any means. She needed other sources of income that guaranteed money for herself should she ever lose a fight. What she didn’t tell was that a lot of the activity she’s involved in isn’t exactly legal.

During her dad’s attempts at starting up the Dragon’s Den there had been many break-ins, vandalism, and other setbacks that Taiyang simply fought through to keep his dream alive. The single father figured that things would eventually sort themselves out which they did, but not through unassisted means. His daughter decided to assure her father’s business remains unharmed and protected by doing something she never thought she would.

Yang Xiao Long joined a local gang - The White Fang.


	2. The Odd One Out

“Yang… you’re late.” Standing at the entrance to the stairwell is a man. He’s extremely slender, just barely taller than Yang by no more than an inch, and has a pink streak that trails down the left side of his head.

“Sorry, Ren. I forgot this was going on tonight. What’s the damage?”

“Nothing serious, thankfully. VPD stopped another protest, everyone’s fine, but Adam’s trying to incite a riot. We’ve also got word that we have a special guest in Vale that’s likely to make several people very unhappy - the extremists, at least.” After the quick briefing, Ren steps aside and Yang makes her way upstairs just in time to see Adam slam his hand on the table where he and his meeting party are boothed.

The red-headed bull Faunus is pretty well dressed. His messy, curly red strands manage to hide his only Faunus trait pretty well. The only thing that stands out of the ordinary in his attire is the eye patch he keeps over his left eye. Yang’s never asked if there’s a reason for it or if it’s just a fashion accessory.

“If this is how they want to treat US, then I say we show them what kind of monsters we can be!” Adam shouts though it’s hard to tell who he’s yelling at.

“Sorry, I’m late. What’s the topic?” Yang interrupts, making five sets of eyes immediately turn towards her.

“Adam being a typical hothead.” An amber-eyed brunette calls out with a welcoming smile. She’s wearing a pretty black crop top with a few diamond-shaped cutouts just below the neckline. It’s complemented by a white tailcoat and black fitted pants. Atop her head are two exposed feline ears, an open trait of her Faunus heritage.

“Nice to see you, Blake.” Yang smiles at the amber-eyed cat Faunus.

“Violence isn’t the answer, Adam. If humans fear us, it’s no better than what we have now.” A much older and larger man says who is seated next to Blake. He then turns his attention towards the tardy blonde. “It’s nice to see you, Yang.”

“Daddydonna. How’s the wife doing?” Yang proceeds towards the table but chooses to stand. On the left side of the booth are Ghira and Blake, the large man taking up an amount of space that could easily fit two people which is where Yang’s current attention lies, much to Adam’s annoyance.

“Please don’t call him that,” Blake grumbles to Yang’s nickname.

“Kali’s doing well. She’s eager to see your next fight. Oh, she wanted me to send you to the bakery to pick up a few pastries for yourself and your sister.” Ghira slides out from the booth and offers Yang his seat while simultaneously pulling the blonde in for a quick one-armed hug.

“Sounds good. Maybe tomorrow. I do owe Bellamomma some love.” Yang assures him. She takes the offered seat and gazes across the table to the other three participants of this small get together. Out the very corner of her eye, Yang can spot a short figure dressed in red that waves in her direction. She can tell immediately that it’s the second half of the Malachite twins and gives a wave of her hand in acknowledgment before they disappear to the stairwell.

“Don’t call her that, either!” Blake gives the brawler a quick knee to the thigh.

“I wish you wouldn’t show up late to our meetings, Little Dragon.” The nickname is spat out with mild hostility from a dark-skinned brunette with tiger stripe tattoos going down their arms. Yang’s gaze immediately snaps over to where the voice originated from and comes to meet Sienna’s stare. Her amber eyes bear a shocking resemblance to Blake which at first had confused Yang into mistaking Sienna for a distant aunt or cousin. The comment was seen as a racist stereotype to Sienna and it took both Ghira and Blake vouching for Yang to convince the woman that she wasn’t another Faunus hater.

“It wasn’t intentional. I make it to all the fun outings and team bonding exercises, don’t I?” Yang returns Sienna’s sarcasm with a confident smirk that makes their tiger ears twitch in annoyance.

“She has a point… she’s more punctual than most.” The person sitting between Sienna and Adam cuts in. “She’s not perfect-”

“Because I’m not a Faunus.”

“- but she helps out the most and usually finds a non-violent solution to things despite her being one of the deadliest pairs of hands in Vale.” The tanned girl smiles at Yang and reaches over her back to swing her ponytail out in front. Right after, she produces a brush and begins to take care of her locks but maintains her eyes on the rest of the group to show her attention is given.

“Thanks, Ilia. At least someone appreciates my hard work. So, what happened that’s got you pissed, Adam? At least more than your norm.” 

“It wasn’t anything big.” Blake decides to take the reins in answering the question. “VPD came by and just had us scram. Disturbing the peace, blah blah blah. We were peaceful, and we weren’t obstructing anything. It was just disheartening, I guess?” Blake shrugs her shoulders after.

“I mean, it’s nothing compared to what’s happened before. Vale and Patch have always been super accepting of the Faunus for the most part, but there’s always a bad apple.” Yang sighs but then continues, “Anyway, the important stuff. What’re we dealing with in terms of territory?” The five exchange glances before Sienna clears her throat to speak up. 

“Nothing’s changed. We made negotiations to offer up a portion of the docks in exchange for an airship landing zone near the edge of town. Docks are going to be shared, at least for now.” Sienna explains with an exaggerated sigh at the end.

“The Spiders aren’t that bad. At least they’re not a bunch of racist assholes.” Blake chimes in with her opinion. “It could be worse, we could be dealing with the Winchesters.”

“Hah! Those disorganized idiots couldn’t find their way out of a bride’s veil, let alone know how to manage territory.” Sienna starts to genuinely laugh, triggering a few smiles from around the table from all but Adam.

“If we’re done here, I’ll be heading back to Forever Falls.” Adam excuses himself and stands up from the table. His exit is quick and quiet, leaving the four women and the towering parent.

“Sheesh… for a kid from the suburbs he’s always uptight. Forever Falls is a great area and some pretty spicy real estate.” Blake shakes her head after Adam leaves. Yang decides to get up and sit next to Ilia to take Adam’s place so Ghira can sit back down.

“Hate to say it, but it’s his attitude that makes a lot of people still dislike the White Fang. I get that a lot of it is justified, but you can’t always fight hate with hate. No offense.” She’s specifically referring to Sienna when she states ‘no offense’.

“None took. Unlike Ghira over here, you’ve followed through on making a change a lot faster than he could. Don’t get me wrong, Ghira’s work has always been... admirable, but he’s too patient. You, however, take action the moment the sun rises.” For the first time since she’s met Sienna, the tiger Faunus reaches across Ilia to offer her hand to Yang. At first, she’s shocked at the offering but quickly takes the hand to shake it.

“Anytime. I uh… figured if I could help my dad, help the Faunus and help Vale, well… my way would hopefully get things-”

“However, blood still gets spilled daily. You’ve been good at negotiating with the Spiders, but soon we’ll have Atlesians littering Vale and working with the VPD. We have a Schnee coming by to compete in our annual tournament.”

Sienna’s announcement draws out a look of shock from Yang. She looks around the table to see if anyone else is just as surprised but all of their faces hold as firm as stone. It seems like they’ve already been made aware.

“Does Adam-”

“He’s indeed aware. That was the main catalyst for his anger.”

“If they get harmed we’ll have the entire beehive stirring. The last thing anyone - Vale or the Faunus - needs is the Schnees fucking with us. Hell, Atlas helps sponsor our tournaments and not to mention they loan us Amity Colosseum each year. What are we gonna do if the Schnees start making moves to pull some weight and stop Amity from coming here? What happens if we stop getting Atlas’ tech?” Yang’s constant barrage of questions is stopped by Ghira who raises his hand to calm down the concerned blonde.

The White Fang despises everything that has to do with the Schnees. They’ve abused Faunus as a cheap labor force since Atlas doesn’t have a set minimum wage and healthcare requirement for them. The current head of the Schnee Technology Company is known to be an open Faunus hater and thus that bad reputation extends to anyone who shares the name or wears the snowflake emblem that’s become known as the Faunus’ symbol of oppression.

“We’re aware, and you’ve started to show that you can get results. So, we have a proposition that’ll be a benefit to all of us.” Ghira laces his fingers and places his hands on the table. A posture Yang has seen him adopt when he is about to deliver the terms of a contract.

“Alright,” Yang places her forearm on the table and shifts herself to sit upright properly, “lay it on me.”

“Sienna’s decided to follow in your example - albeit in her own way. She has a small security business that’s begun to gain popularity over the past couple of months. At the moment she, Blake, Coco, Ren, Nora, Pyrrha, Jaune, and a larger gentleman named Yatsuhashi are her current employees. Her ratings are superb, she’s been able to send the right person for each job, but none of them are proper enough for a contract that she needs to accept before midnight.”

Ghira leans back in his seat and moves his hands off of the table to make room for a manilla folder that Sienna throws in front of Yang. She flips open the folder and takes one glance at the header of the very first page on display.

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me. I can’t take this job. I have boxing practice most of the day and this… this is a 24/7 job request.” Yang picks up the first paper and flips through the rest of the documentation. The fact that a White Fang owned business would get a request from the Schnee Tech Company is the Gods offering a chance for them to be the bigger people in this almost two-decade-long rivalry.

“The heiress is the Schnee that’s visiting… and her daddy is paying big bucks for the best security guard that can be provided.” Sienna grabs the folder from Yang and begins sifting through the documents.

“Why can’t she just have a bodyguard from Atlas? That wouldn’t be too hard, especially since it’ll most likely be an Atlas military man, meaning they’ll have a fucking gun.” Yang groans. This contract is trouble, but she already knows what’s coming from Blake.

"If the only comparison is having a gun, you're still qualified." Sienna sneaks in her input before Blake takes over.

“Yang, you’re the only person that doesn’t blatantly hate the Schnees… and not to mention you’re-”

“Human?”

“Best suited to intimidate instead of provoking. Your dad’s taught you to keep a level head, that’s more than what Nora or Sienna can do.”

“And Jaune?”

“You want to trust Mr. Ladykiller to watch over an heiress?”

“What about Pyrrha or Ren?”

“Pyrrha has another assignment and Ren’s paired with Nora to de-escalate her.”

"And Yatsi?"

"He's our enforcer at the docks for now. Just there to look scary and hope it deters anything."

“So, I’m the only person even remotely close to being qualified is what you’re telling me,” Yang mutters a few strings of curses under her breath before slamming her fist on the table. “Fine. Send the details to my scroll. Ugh, if I’m not ready for the Vytal Tournament this year I’m going to be pissed!”

“They’re paying six digits.” Sienna states calmly, “per week. You’re getting the usual cut… so you’ll be sitting pretty for a long while.”

“Woah. I gotta go tell Rubes!” Yang’s arms are shaking in excitement. She’s never been offered this kind of money before in her life, especially for something this simple.

“Good, she arrives in three days.” Sienna starts to organize the papers to close the manilla folder. “If everything goes well you’ll have your first payment in a day and a half. If that’s the case I suggest buying something a bit more… formal”

By the time Sienna organizes the folder and looks up, Yang is already gone. The excited blonde taking off as if she had just won the lottery… and with what she’ll be getting paid, she isn’t that far off.

“...I didn’t even get to tell her she’s excused from White Fang activities…”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still debating if I want it to be just Ruby and Milly, or Ruby and the Twins... Something to digest over the next few weeks. Loan me your opinions ^^


	3. Supervising Her Sister

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter things will formally begin. Probably could have skipped all this stuff, but felt like a fun little warmup to get re-acquainted with writing. Criticism welcomed!

“So, we decided that if we were going to be tatted for the Spiders, we may as well do it in a way that’s unique to us.” Melanie Malachite and her sister, Miltia Malachite both lower their strapless dresses just far enough to show their full-backs, stopping just barely below the waistline. Melanie and Miltia then press together firmly at the hip. On full display is a giant spider web tattoo that spans across both of their backs and even seems to dip underneath their respective underwear. “And that, Little Red, is why one of my nicknames is Spider Twin.”

As Melanie finishes her story, both she and her sister adjust their outfits and turn back around to face the eager listener. What the twins weren’t expecting to see was the small redhead blushing up a storm and having the faintest trace of a nosebleed just underneath their left nostril. It’s enough to make both cover their mouths simultaneously to stifle a giggle before speaking in perfect unison as if they’ve done this many times before.

“How about we take you to the VIP lounge? There’s a special booth for three, just for us.”

The two Malachite twins, Miltia being on Mel’s left, place their arms on the countertop and lean forward to both invade some of Ruby’s space, and give a trained showing off the duo’s cleavage.

Before much more can be done to the nose bled, stuttering mess of a girl, Yang makes her return and drapes her arms over Ruby’s shoulders with a triumphant ‘woo’.

“Big sis is sittin’ pretty, Rubes! You have no idea. That little transforming hoverbike you’ve been saving up for? I’ll pay the rest of it off for you next week, promise.” Through her excitement, she fails to recognize that Ruby’s sitting completely upright and stiff, nor does she see the dazed expression on her sister’s face.

“So, all good news aside from Adam’s yelling?” Miltia asks while remaining in her position of attempting to invade Ruby’s personal space from across the counter.

“He was mad over nothing. I got a bodyguard assignment, though. I’m gonna be looking after a visiting VIP.” Yang states while the Malachites tilt their heads in opposite directions.

“Hate to say, Yang-” Mel begins and Miltia interrupts to finish, “-but you’re not exactly bodyguard material from what we’ve seen.”

“How dare you!” Yang gasps in mock shock and places her fingertips to her sternum to gesture at herself. “I am the greatest protector ever, just ask my best customer.” Yang slaps Ruby on the back and when Ruby hardly sways or reacts to the hit, Yang leans over Ruby’s shoulder to see the flushed face, a dry drop of blood under her nose, and now recognizes the girl’s posture.

“What in Oum’s name did you two do to her!?” Yang looks between her sister and the Malachites.

“We showed her our tattoo.” Melanie states. She stands upright and turns around to show off her back after she brushes her hair aside. “I started telling the story before you left… you know how that story ends.”

“I didn’t think you’d show her the whole thing. Damnit, Rubes. Snap out of it!”

“We didn’t, you’re still the only one to see the full tattoo in all its glory.” Miltia sniggers as Mel continues to tease. The comment seems to have sparked a bit of life from Ruby who starts to twitch and shake her head as if her entire body has just awoken from a full reboot.

“There we go. Too much alcohol, huh?” Yang jokes in her attempt to alter the conversation. The redhead shrugs her shoulders and gives a weak-willed ‘uh-huh’. 

By the time she’s able to lean forward on the counter Miltia disappears and returns to Yang and Ruby’s side of the bar with a glass of water and a wet napkin.

“If you didn’t want her to be teased, you’re supposed to give her to me, Yang.” Miltia rotates Ruby’s stool and crouches slightly to match heights with the girl so she can start to dab away at the dried blood. “Though I guess you couldn’t since I was upstairs, huh?”

“I was a bit rushed, yeah. How were they before I got there? Looked like they were all pretty calm, but I’m sure you must have just left.”

“I excused myself to the ladies’ room just before you showed up. Ilia and Sienna are as handsy as always. Ghira and Blake were giving me apologetic looks, and Adam was well… Adam.” Miltia shrugs her shoulders and puts down the napkin that’s now tipped with a shade of red from Ruby's diluted blood. The same hand grabs the cup of water and offers it to Ruby with a warm and sincere smile. “Sorry about that, Red. We’ll behave from now on… at least while Yang’s around.”

The tail-end of the apology is whispered which earns a stupified giggle from Ruby and a disapproving glare from the blonde above.

“You can stop soliciting my sister.” She says sternly.

“This is my first attempt, and I’m sure if I was making your sister uncomfortable she’d tell me. The Spiders have their rules, Yang.” Miltia reminds and the boxer gives a defeated sigh.

“If you get uncomfortable don’t be afraid to tell her to stop, Rubes.” Yang folds her arms, clearly disapproving of her sister being flirted with, but it was her own decision to bring Ruby here. If she gets mad at harmless fun by the Malachite twins it wouldn’t make sense in her eyes.

Satisfied that her sister will at least be in the care of someone she can trust, Yang retires to a spot further down the bar and flags down Junior for some more liquor. Yang keeps her drinking light and sporadic. Under normal circumstances she’s fine with walking home knowing that Junior will stash her bike somewhere safe; the fact that she has to bring Ruby home is a deterrent for her getting hammered. It may be a Friday night, but Ruby’s face isn’t well-known in White Fang territory, not that Yang wants it to be known. The less the White Fang sees of her family, the safer her secret is kept.

Hours go by with Yang having a casual conversation with a few familiar faces. Her eyes always manage to drift back to Ruby to see that the red-themed Malachite hasn’t left Ruby’s lap since her previous glances. 

The two have gotten along better than expected, though Miltia did have one bad attempt at prodding at Ruby’s comfort levels. Miltia successfully brought Ruby to the dance floor, but the Spider’s method of dancing had her pressing against the featherweight boxer in a way that made Ruby request the two to stop, per her sister's suggestion. At the mere mention of the word, Miltia apologized and the two returned to the bar to continue chatting.

Miltia and Melanie both have a special set of skills. Melanie is the superior drinker and is typically used to coerce information through casual conversation and an expensive bottle. Miltia on the other hand is known for her dancing and genuine people skills. It’s unfair to say that she’s the more honest of the Malachite twins, but she’s the one that draws less suspicion for sure.

As the call for final drinks draws near, Yang decides it best to head out now before the VPD decides to set up a checkpoint on both sides of the exit street of Junior’s Club. The blonde walks over to her sister and pats the red-themed boxer on the shoulder to get her attention from Miltia.

“We gotta get going, Rubes. Pretty sure Milly already gave you her number, so how about we get going before I get breathalyzed?”

A momentary frown appears on Ruby’s face. “But it’s only-” When Ruby pulls out her scroll and sees that it’s already 3 in the morning she stares at the digital clock and groans. “..way past my bedtime.”

“Well, since you two are leaving… and I  _ didn’t _ give her my number. I’ll fix that in just a second.” The Malachite snatches the scroll and with surprising speed navigates to Ruby’s contacts, types in her name, and even goes as far as to take a quick selfie to make a contact image. “I didn’t think you’d want her chatting it up with a Spider… but since you seemed fine with the assumption I suppose it’s alright.”

“Ruby’s allowed to have her list of friends… So long as she doesn’t get tugged into any trouble.” Yang’s words are spoken carefully. Yes, Yang is a White Fang and Miltia is a Spider, but Ruby has no affiliation with either and Yang would rather it stay that way. The message is understood between the two and with a quick farewell to the twins and Junior the Rose-Xiao Longs make their leave.

As expected, there is indeed a checkpoint being set up, but Yang is quick on getting by before any of the officers can flag her down. The only downside to visiting Juniors is the fact that it’s just within the border of Spider territory. The location itself has been accepted as a neutral get-together where peace will reign, but there’s no guarantee it will remain the same once you are back on the pavement. The chances of it happening are unlikely, but Yang thought her chances of joining the Fangs were second to none.

\---------------------

Yang’s little slice of heaven comes in the form of a two-bedroom apartment that sits on the street corner of a pretty significant intersection just at the border of the residential district. Her apartment is on the second floor, and thankfully the building owner even has a garage where she can safely stash her bike.

After losing her distraction of Miltia Malachite, Ruby’s desire for sleep began to catch up to her during the ride home. Now that she no longer has to cling to Yang for safety, the redhead has caught herself a piggyback ride up to the apartment courtesy of her gracious host.

“D’aww, gonna go to bed without texting Milly? And here I thought you two hit it off real good.” Yang teases while she fiddles with the lock on the heavy off-white metal door.

“Like you’d approve of me dating a gang member,” Ruby mutters and buries her face into the comfort of Yang’s mane.

“Rubes, as long as you’re not IN the gang, I don’t care. Milly’s good people.” Once she gets the door open she tucks her key away and enters. “Let’s lay you down, and I’ll see if I can help with some of your homework in the morn- afternoon, alright?”

Upon closing the door behind her, Yang faces down the hallway of her apartment. At the end of the hallway are the living room and kitchen combo that’s popularly used in studio setups. The hallway itself has four doors with two on either side. The first and second doors on the left are the master bedroom and her miscellaneous closet respectively. The two on the right are the bathroom and guest room.

Yang steps on the back of her boots to step out of each one, thenproceeds to go down the hallway to the guest room. Like the rest of the house, the guest room has cream walls and wooden floors. The main difference is she’s changed the drapes with a crimson set and had one of Ruby’s rose-themed blankets given to her so she can use it here. If anything, it made her home feel less lonely to traverse with the illusion that she’s passing by her baby sister’s room as if she were back on Patch. Yang would never admit to being homesick; especially when she’s less than an hour from it.

To deposit her sister to bed, Yang sits down at the edge and waits for Ruby to detach from her shoulders. When the redhead falls back, Yang tugs both of Ruby’s shoes off and takes them with her to leave near the front door before retiring to her room.

After making it to her bed she checks her scroll to find that she has a digital copy of the forms she was looking through at the meeting. Instead of going right to bed, the blonde starts to study the file of what her job will detail.


	4. Chapter 4

The calm chirping of birds and the crashing of waves hitting the shoreline are the sounds the Schnee heiress starts her morning to. Her arrival to Vale occurred during the dead of night and as such, she comfortably slept in on the passenger ship so she can appreciate her first look at the vibrant city when it’s easier to see. The heiress starts her typical morning rituals: brushing her teeth, showering, stretching, and tending to her silken snow-white strands.

As Weiss runs a brush through her hair she stares into the mirror over the bathroom sink. Every day she looks in hopes her icy blue eyes will have their flawless luster restored, but the scar that pans over her left eye always remains. It is the one thing Weiss can admit is imperfect about her appearance.

After she is done in the bathroom she changes out of her nightwear and into her white dress and bolero jacket combo. Afterward, she decides to pick up her scroll and give a call to her favorite butler, Klein. Her scroll rings three times exactly before it’s answered by an optimistic voice.

“Oh, Miss Schnee! I take it you’ve arrived in Vale? And a day early I might add!”

“A day and a half, to be exact. We pulled into port last night but I decided against unboarding. I’ll be leaving the ship in a few minutes.” She sets the scroll to the speaker and places it at her side so she can begin putting on her heels.

“Well, I hope you have a wonderful time in Vale, my Happy Little Snowflake.” Soon after a slightly different voice comes over the line but Weiss can identify it as Klein’s still. “Hopefully you can stay warm without any hot air radiating in your proximity.”

Weiss starts to giggle, knowing well that Klein’s referring to her father with that statement. “I’ll try my best, Klein. Please inform him that I’ve called in… and send my best regards to Winter if you manage to spot her.”

After their call, Weiss makes her way out of the VIP suite within the cruise ship. She decides before she unboards she may as well make a call to her supposed bodyguard during her stay in Vale. As such, she produces a small scrap of paper she jotted down the information on the previous day so she may dial.

She was against having an escort during her stay in Vale, but her father insisted that if she weren’t to have an Atlas escort then she  **would** accept a bodyguard at the very least from Vale. His reasoning was less of concern over Weiss as it was a showing of power that the Schnees are not so easily dispatched by the vagrants and vagabonds of Vale.

She did her research into the security companies that Vale has to offer but only one seemed to have respectable reviews and a decent variety of personnel. Uncaring for who would be her escort, she sent the list to her father and was soon given a number for the guard that was assigned to her. They will not be on the clock until tomorrow morning, but perhaps they may be available to at least talk and introduce each other. For all she knows, they could be a Faunus, and the last thing she needs is for the two to get off to a bumpy start because it’s some apparent fact that anyone bearing the name of Schnee is a Faunus hater.

Unlike her call with Klein, the phone rings several more times before someone answers with a loud groan and blatant fatigue.

“Hello?”

“Um, hello. I was looking for a… Yang Xiao Long? Perhaps I have the wrong number.”

“Depends on who’s asking.” The voice answers back with a light amount of hostility.

“She is supposed to be assigned to me tomorrow morning, if I’m speaking to the wrong person, I’m sor-” 

“OH. Ms. Schnee, right?” All traces of drowsiness and fatigue seem to leave her voice at the realization that she’s now talking to her employer.

“That is correct. Is this a bad time? I’m aware you don’t start until tomorrow, but I was hoping we would have the chance to meet before then on a more casual note.” Weiss tucks the paper away into a pocket on her dress and starts to walk down the ramp leading from the ship’s deck to the docks.

“No no, it’s my bad. I was up late helping my little sis with some homework, reading your file, and doing some cardio. I didn’t mean to sound… ugh, this is the worst first impression.” 

The volatile yet positive energy Weiss is picking up from Yang is amusing, to say the least. She was expecting to have someone answer her with a “yes, ma’am” or “no, Ms. Schnee” to all of her questions, but the chatterbox that’s been assigned to her seems to be a breath of fresh air for sure.

“I see, well I am just leaving the ship, at the docks. Perhaps we could meet in a local coffee shop or maybe a small diner for lunch?”

“If you don’t mind a ten-minute walk from where you are, there’s a place called “Coco’s Corner.” It’s in the main square, you can find your way there through the directory. It’s in one of our biggest tourist spots so there’s no way you’ll miss it. I can be there in fifteen.”

“I’ll take my time, then. See you there.”

\--------------------------------------------------------------

Weiss found that Yang was right on one thing - the place was nearly impossible to miss. A large brown sign with gold lettering, spaced vertically dominates one of the intersections into the Vale Plaza. The sign simply reads “Coco’s.”

The front of the building looks like any basic store with a strong brick foundation and two squares of windows on both sides of a doorway central to the storefront. If it weren’t for the white blinds impeding her sight Weiss would be able to get a decent look inside.

‘ _ Should I wait out here? Perhaps she is already inside… Wait, how will I know what she looks like?’ _

Weiss’ minor debate takes all of thirty seconds before she settles on going into the coffee shop and waiting for her bodyguard-to-be inside. Upon entry, she’s greeted with a very retro-themed store. Along the left half of the store are seating tables, window-side stools set in front of a shelf placed just underneath the storefront glass, and the coffee station with a few employees busy at work on the other side.

The right side of the store is covered by a green carpet that oddly complements the hardwood that covers the rest of the store floor. In this area are bean bag chairs, couches, a few well-placed nightstands beside the furniture and to top it off, a large bookshelf that dominates the entire right wall.

The ceiling is decorated with several operational ceiling fans that offer dim lighting to illuminate the reading space without offering a blinding amount of light, very befitting of the calm ambiance.

“Good morning, and welcome to Coco’s! How may I-”

Weiss turns to the cheerful voice to see a rabbit Faunus approaching her. Their outfit can only be described as the Cinderella peasant dress with a black undershirt instead of the traditional light blue. Weiss wonders why the person stopped mid-sentence but after she looks at the large, floppy ears atop their head she sighs and stiffens her arm out for a handshake.

“Good morning, my name is Weiss.” The heiress offers the girl a smile which is returned when Velvet takes the offered hand.

“Y-yes, good morning, and welcome to Coco’s.” She starts again, “I’m Velvet.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Velvet. This is my first time here, would you mind helping me find a seat? I’m supposed to be meeting someone.” Weiss makes certain to maintain eye contact to drill home the fact that any disheartening rumors about her are surely false.

“Of course, right this way. Any preference on seating?”

“Somewhere in the back? I’d prefer to keep a low profile… if possible.”

Velvet walks Weiss towards the back of the store along the right side of the room. Near the corner is a single square table with two chairs. Velvet goes as far as to pull one of the chairs out to designate it for Weiss and waits for the woman to sit before handing out one of the menus she has tucked away in the pouch of her apron.

“Would you like some time to look over the menu?”

“A mocha, please. Two sugars and a… Belgian waffle?” Weiss says after glancing through the menu to find something to eat with her coffee. “It wouldn’t be a bother to have to go through this process again, would it? I can wait until Yang arrives and we can order together.”

“You know Yang?” Velvet tilts her head, and Weiss raises an eyebrow in response.

“Hardly, but she gave me this location to be our first meeting place,” Weiss explains. That seems to be a good enough answer to Velvet who nods her head while she digests the information. 

“Yang’s an old friend, it won’t be a bother coming by to take care of her. I’ll be right back with your order, Ms. Schn-”

“Weiss will do just fine; thank you, Velvet. It was a pleasure to make your acquaintance.” As Velvet walks away with a bit more joy in her step than she had upon welcoming the heiress in, Weiss lets out a sigh. This, unfortunately, is nothing new for her. Even on the ship, she had to tell several of the Faunus crewmen that they were not offending her with their presence.

While she waits, Weiss stands up and randomly selects a book from the fiction section. She returns to her seat and reads the title out loud. “The Man with Two Souls…” She flips the book over to read the synopsis on the back. “Ozma is a man that can never be alone. His soul is constantly reborn into the body of another. He’s seen kingdoms come and go, but what he can’t see is what he cherishes most: the woman he loves.”

Weiss chuckles but decides to humor the story and give the first twenty pages an attempt to win her over. After the fifth page Velvet returns with a coffee cup placed atop a small plate, and a second plate with a sizable Belgian waffle. Velvet places both down in front of Weiss who starts to place the open book upside down to save her page. Velvet quickly stops the book from touching the table and pulls out a bookmark that has an ad for Coco’s on it.

“We try our best to maintain the books, please use this instead. Sorry about that.”

“You’re doing your job, thank you.” Weiss takes the offered bookmark and uses it to hold her page while she takes the first sip of her mocha. The taste of chocolate is a bit strong, but the drink itself is delicious. “Wow, this is delicious… but I could use a bit more milk if you wouldn’t mind.”

Thankfully, Velvet had previously set a creamer of milk on the counter and is back in a flash to top off the cup with milk. After a second sip, Weiss gives a much more natural smile and nods her appreciation to Velvet.

“Oh, just so you know Ms. Sc- I mean, Weiss. I heard Yang’s bike pull into the lot, she should be inside any minute.”

‘ _ She drives a motorcycle? Hm’ _ “Thank you, Velvet. Do I bring this to the counter when I’m done?”

“If you would like to, I make regular rounds to pick up any empty porcelain.”

Satisfied with her job, Velvet returns to the counter and begins to talk to a woman with shades on and a beret. It’s a combo that Weiss finds very odd, especially considering how dimly lit the shop already is. She pays the woman no more mind than needed and shifts her attention to her Belgian waffle.

By the time she’s halfway through with her meal the front door to the store gets pushed open a lot harder than any of the previous customers have done so far. The sound of the bell that rings when someone enters the cafe was quiet enough to not phase Weiss normally, but this time the loud, violent chimes make her head turn in an instant.

The guilty party is a tall blonde woman wearing an outfit that seems to consist primarily of khaki overalls and a  **lot** of zippers. Zippers on both thighs, a bolero jacket that’s unzipped, the khaki outfit itself being zipped at least until it comes upon the challenge of scaling the curve of the woman’s chest. Why would one woman need so many zippers?

The blonde laughs and immediately begins to hit it off with Velvet as if the two were long lost friends, and soon she begins to head towards Weiss.

It doesn’t take Weiss long to do the math, but the shock on her face after she connects the dots is mistaken for something else and the beret-wearing employee behind the counter doesn’t miss a beat in throwing in her input.

“Careful, Yang. We got a gawker already and you haven’t even taken anything off.”

The native Atlesian chooses to ignore the comment so she may stand up and offer the approaching blond a smile.

“And you are Yang Xiao Long, correct?”

“The one and only. Sorry about the wait, I couldn’t find my keys.” Yang offers her right hand to Weiss who’s own hand extends at the exact same time. “Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Schnee.”

“Weiss will do just fine. I suppose Ms. Schnee can be used in public as a means to save face but please, I would much more prefer ‘Weiss’.”

“Alright, well how about we take a seat and start getting all the business stuff out so we can enjoy ourselves for as long as you’ll humor me, hm?” Yang places her hands on her hips and tilts her head down to look at the shorter woman.

“If straight to business is your preference, then sure.”

The two take a seat, Velvet eventually comes over with Yang’s usual order, and a conversation ensues between Weiss and Yang. Simple agreements like proper names, scheduling, and preferences the Schnee had were quick to go through. Weiss was surprised to even see Yang produce a small notepad where she jotted down most of what was being said.

“And as for the 24/7 status… Of course, you’ll be getting paid for such, but simply having you on call would be a suitable arrangement. Father insisted on me having at least a bodyguard since I refused his platoon of guardsmen.”

“I hate to say this but, you’re contradicting everything on your file. Sheesh, I had a few stashes of clothes spread around town in case I ever needed a quick shower between drop-offs but now… this is looking easier than a part-time job.”

"My father typically handles the security detail. He wishes to keep images up that the Schnees are powerful, but all he’s doing is making us look arrogant.” Weiss clears her throat and raises a hand to signal for Velvet. “Personal feelings aside, if there are things you prefer to do that are in my file, please say so. I’m not a nightmare to work with, I promise.”

“Well, until you get used to Vale I think I’d prefer to stick with you a bit. Once you get your bearings I’m willing to back off. I’d hate to shine the city in a bad light, but there’s plenty of illegal activity going on.”

“I’m aware… I’ve kept up on the crime charts, but recently there’s been a lowering in violent crime, and an increase in peaceful protesting. I’m also aware of the presence of… anti-Schnee organizations in the area... to put it lightly-”

‘ _ Oh, you have no idea.’  _ Yang thinks to herself

“-but I’m hoping by the end of my visit there is at least one person who realizes that I am  **not** my father’s ideals.”

“Well, I already know three people you can put on that list,” Yang says with a smile and gestures over to the counter where the beret wearer and Velvet offer a polite wave towards the two. “Velvet’s the nicest Faunus I know, if someone can find a way to hate her they go on my bad list instantly.”

“I’m assuming there’s an exception there for allergies?” Weiss raises an eyebrow.

“I said ‘hate’, not ‘inconvenienced by her traits’.” Yang clarifies. “Anyway, this possible part-time on-call bodyguard deal sounds great. I was worried I’d fall behind on my boxing practice. The Vytal Festival is coming up in a couple of months.”

“Oh, are you in any of the special brackets?” 

“I’m up for a few. Suppressed aura stipulation, the no semblance stipulation, and the all-out unarmed.” Yang lists off.

“I see, I’ll most likely see you in the all-out bracket, then.” Weiss smiles and Yang’s eyebrow appears from above the frames of her shades.

“You’re participating? Not to be rude-” but Weiss is already folding her arms and raising an eyebrow, forcing Yang to take a careful approach to her next words. “-but I never took Schnee’s for the martial arts types.” Yang trails off into awkward laughter. She had forgotten that Sienna mentioned Weiss’ purpose for coming to Vale.

“I’ll have you know I’m a star pupil in Atlesian Wushu,” Weiss says matter of factly, “and I am more than confident that as I am now, I can easily beat you.”

Instantly Yang’s competitive nature takes over. The blonde moves to her feet and smirks.

“Then how about we have ourselves an exhibition match? My dad owns the Dragon’s Den on the other side of town. We can head over there, take a ring, and have ourselves a friendly spar to test the waters. I’ll even let you pick the restrictions.”

Not seeing the harm in a friendly spar, especially since she wasn’t able to have much sparring practice on the ship, Weiss stands up and removes the bookmark from the book she had been reading before Yang’s arrival.

“Very well, and I won’t think of you as any less efficient of a bodyguard  _ when  _ I win.”

“Oh, you are  _ so _ going down, Schnee.”


	5. Enter The Dragon's Den

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Yang and Weiss have a quick bout to measure each other's skills.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So... was not expecting to take almost 3 months to update. School got busy, had a few scares of "the Backstreet Boys Reunion Tour" as I'll refer to the Rona. Anyway, hope those of you who have found these first few chapters interesting will enjoy what comes next :) I have up to chapter 10 written... I just want to be ahead of what's posted so I can make sure I do proper continuity checks. Anyway, enjoy and let me know what I can improve on!

Taiyang was not expecting to see his daughter on a Sunday, let alone with the heiress of the STC with her. The weightlifting areas and three of the six rings were in use. Currently, the only person using the mats and rollers to properly stretch was Weiss. After the initial challenge was given, Yang offered Weiss a ride on her bike to bring the girl to the gym for their bout. After a quick reminder that she was not wearing a proper outfit to spar in, the two decided it best to go their separate ways and rendezvous at the Dragon’s Den.

Yang used her time to go home and get her boxing shorts, sports top, and more comfortable shoes. Weiss on the other hand decided to show up in her combat attire with a small suitcase at her side with what Yang assumed to be a change of clothes. The way the limo with the Schnee crest pulled up to the front of the gym seemed straight out of a movie, where a high-profile martial artist comes to challenge the owner of the gym to take it as their own.

Weiss is wearing a traditional tai chi uniform. The top is primarily white with an embroidered pattern of the Schnee crest dominating the right side of the outfit. Though it also appears that Weiss has taken some style liberties as well, the sleeves have been shortened and a light blue ombré done into the white silk, finished off with a sash around her waist. She’s wearing a matching pair of loose pants that could easily be mistaken for jogging pants if not for the blatant silk texture, and flat shoes instead of her usual heels which makes Yang realize the true difference in size between them.

“So… your job wants you to be her bodyguard… and the day before your job starts you’re going to punch her? Am I understanding this correctly?” Taiyang has his arms folded while he talks to Yang who’s taken to doing her stretches inside one of the rings. “You’ve always had an odd thought process, but now I’m starting to think Ruby hit your head one too many times instead of your kidney.”

“Dad, it’s fine. We’re both competing in the Vytal Tournament, so I’m sure a friendly spar isn’t going to piss her off. Besides, she’s way more chill than you think. Everything I’ve read up on her - gossip, politics, and for her security detail - has been flat out wrong.” Yang’s comment makes Tai pause and ponder. 

“If she’s competing I guess it’s fine to get some practice. Do you know what type of martial art she studies?”

“She said Atlesian Wushu.”

“Okay… but what style? I don’t think you understand how many different martial arts, and techniques fit under the term ‘wushu’.” Tai explains.

“She didn’t tell me,” Yang answers with a shrug of her shoulders while she continues with her stretches. She puts one of her feet onto the turnbuckle and slowly starts to bend her other knee to stretch out her hamstrings.

“So you’re about to fight someone who’s not only picking the stipulation but has her martial art a secret. You’re talented, Sweetheart, very talented, but I think you’re overestimating yourself just because she appears to be a bit prim and proper.”

“She’s probably going to say something dumb like ‘no auras’ or ‘no semblances’, there’s nothing to worry about, Dad. Besides, you’re treating this like you’ve bet a million lien on me.”

Taiyang gives up on trying to point out the flaws in Yang’s relaxed nature and hops down from the ring apron to talk to Weiss instead. He approaches Weiss just as she’s sitting on the floor.

“Well, I certainly wasn’t expecting such regal company in my gym today.” He opens up with a half-hearted chuckle.

“I certainly wasn’t expecting to be here either, Mr. Xiao Long. I’m not harming your business, am I?” The frown that takes over Weiss’ face makes Taiyang flinch as if he had just offended the queen of a nation.

“Not at all, you’re welcome here anytime.” He finds himself answering without much thought. “I was just curious about what martial art you study… My daughter told me Atlesian Wushu, but you and I know that’s just a huge umbrella term.”

“It is, but if I gave any other answer I would be lying,” Weiss responds. “Ever since I was a child I’ve wanted to learn and arranged with my father that I may do so as long as I maintain perfect scores in school and keep up with other extracurricular activities he deems important to my success.”

“That doesn’t sound very pleasant. Martial arts takes a ton of continuous practice to master. I can’t imagine Yang or Ruby being able to do that. I for sure wouldn’t have cut it in that deal.”

“It wasn’t easy, but this will be my first test to see if I am ready for the Festival or if I need more practice. Be honest, what percentile would you give your daughter if ranking her with the other combatants in Vale?” 

“I’d rank her top ten overall, but her technique still needs tweaking.” He explains.

“Her technique? I’m assuming she’s a boxer, yes? I didn’t bother asking her since I couldn’t give her a proper answer to her question.”

“Yup, she’s a heavy hitter with an iron jaw. Takes after her dad for sure.” Tai chuckles with pride.

“Interesting, well I’ll be sure to put her in a position where she’ll take your advice to heart from here on out.”

The sheer confidence - or dare he says, arrogance - that Weiss puts on display leaves Taiyang confused. If this was the way Weiss had approached Yang then he can see why his daughter was so eager to spar.

“May I ask why you’re so certain you can beat Yang? Not that I don’t think you can. You’re just very-”

“Arrogant?” Weiss undoes her split and moves to her feet. As she does so Tai gives an affirmative grunt. “It’s because it’s the only time I can be certain of myself.”

“I can’t say I follow.”

“When I sit down to practice piano, practice my singing, perfect my fencing, exercise my semblance, study the varying charts for the STC, or practicing the violin, I never feel like myself. I’m not happy with what I am doing because I am only doing them so I can practice martial arts.”

To say Taiyang’s expression dropped would be an understatement. The father of two instinctually begins to spread his arms for a hug but recalls that he hardly knows this woman and quickly moves his hands to his hips to play off the previous gesture.

  
  


“Well, I’m glad you’re able to do what you love.” Tai takes a deep breath. “I know the feeling to an extent. I worked odd jobs, terrible hours, most of the time earning minimum wage or less just to keep getting even a single penny more put away. I’ve had break-ins, vandalism, and inflation set me back, but I kept pushing for it because this is what I wanted.” Tai smiles as he gazes about his gym. He’s put blood, sweat, and tears into getting his dream to become a reality. “Anyway, here I am getting sentimental. You ready for your match with Yang, uh…”

“I prefer Weiss, please, and I am.”

“Weiss.” Tai completes before giving a motion with his head for the wushu fighter to follow him to the ring.

While Yang and Taiyang are both tall enough to grab the middle rope of the ring and hop onto the apron, Weiss’ height impedes her from entering in as flawless a manner. The Schnee patiently places a knee onto the high apron then climbs to her feet before finally entering through the ropes.

“Well,” Tai begins while he stands in the center. Yang has taken to one corner while Weiss takes to the opposite. “How about we get our stipulation before we begin?”

“Dropping to a knee or falling onto the ring will qualify as a loss,” Weiss says with utmost clarity. “I’m up for as many rematches Yang would like with that stipulation.”

“Alright. Yang, do you understand the terms?” Tai looks to his daughter who nods her head.

The sounds of his gym or lack of had not hit Taiyang’s ears until now. He turns his attention to the rest of the room to see that everyone has stopped what they are doing to look at the match about to take place. His members are a well-established mix of humans and Faunus, and there’s no doubt a personal bias for Weiss to lose for many of them.

“I’ll be refereeing. Any tripping that isn’t caused by the opponent will not count towards the stipulation. Is that fair?” Weiss gives a nod to Taiyang then offers a  _ wushu baoquan li _ , a traditional salute by placing a closed right fist against an open left hand. For Weiss, it’s the equivalent of Yang attempting to ‘touch gloves’.

“Alright… begin.”

Both Weiss and Yang walk to the center of the ring. Yang takes the chance to extend a loose left fist out to Weiss. To Taiyang’s surprise, Weiss understands the gesture and takes the opportunity to press her relaxed palm to Yang’s fist before stepping back to signal the true start of their bout.

Yang opens up with a few quick jabs, all of which are gently deflected with Weiss tapping away at Yang’s wrist and forearm. It’s not until Yang gets confident enough to throw her right cross that the entire room erupts, but not for what you’d expect.

As Yang throws her punch, the next string of events happens in slow motion for her. For the split second that her right arm blocks her field of view of the right side of her body, Weiss disappears.

“Kouho.” She can hear the word whispered to her right. The voice saying it is undeniably the Schnee heiress. Yang begins to lower her arm to see if she can spot Weiss, but she only gets a glimpse of snow-white strands as they fly by her peripheral vision.

“Haiho...” The next thing Yang feels is a forearm come across her chest and her right knee suddenly giving out. All in one motion the prodigy boxer is sent off of her feet, slamming into the ring floor with her shoulders absorbing the impact.

Yang remains on the ring floor, burning what little she just saw into her mind. There wasn’t hesitation, there wasn’t time for her to react. She was just…  _ slow _ .

“Would you like to try again?” Weiss stands at Yang’s side with a hand offered to help the boxer up. Yang accepts the gesture and gets to her feet to see everyone in the gym glancing her way. Even her father seems shocked at what he just saw. His face is neutral and his arms are folded, but the single raised eyebrow gives away his surprise.

“Best of three.” Yang takes a few steps back and waits for her dad to announce the start of the second round. When nothing is said she looks at him to see a blank stare on his face. “Dad?”

“Oh, right. Round two, begin.” He announces.

Much of the same happens again, but this time Yang purposefully avoids using her cross. Her constant jabbing proves ineffective, and eventually, her impatience gets the better of her. The moment she throws out the right hand she gets treated to the same events as earlier. The only difference is the forearm across her chest doesn’t appear. Instead, she feels the same knee give out and drops onto it without feeling more than a gentle love tap.

“Mr. Xiao Long?” Yang can hear Weiss call to her father.

“Taiyang is fine, Weiss.” He says, though his voice sounds slightly uneasy.

“You  _ are _ her coach, correct? I’m sure you had the superior vantage point to study what I did. Perhaps-”

“Right, come here, Firecracker.” Tai helps Yang to her feet and brings the blonde boxer to the furthest corner of the ring from Weiss.

It’s not how she planned to spend her Sunday, but Weiss is more than content with sparring the day away.

“Sheesh, I take back the tease from Coco’s, just don’t kick my ass next.” Weiss turns around towards the opposite corner of where Yang and Tai went to see the beret wearer and Velvet standing on the apron side by side. “You’re single, right? I love a girl that can kick my ass.”

_ ‘Oh, brother…’  _ Weiss rolls her eyes which earns another hearty laugh. “I’m teasing. Name’s Coco. Yeah,  _ that _ Coco.” She snickers and lifts the front of her beret slightly. “Nice moves, can’t say I’ve seen anyone drop Yang like a bad habit.”

“Thank you.” Weiss walks towards the two. Much to her surprise Velvet reaches over the ropes and offers a hug to the shorter. Weiss sees no reason to refuse and welcomes the embrace. While the two are hugging Coco leans in towards Weiss’ vacant side.

“We stopped by for two reasons. One, we kind of wanted to see what you could do. Two, we figured we would show the people here first-hand that you’re not the STC’s reputation.” After digesting Coco’s words Weiss glances towards the several gym attendees that were watching the bout. Among them, she sees smiles, confusion, and shock.

“I appreciate the gesture, you two, but that feels a bit dishonest.” Weiss pats Velvet’s back a few times to signal the end of the embrace which Velvet complies to.

“Nothing dishonest about a friend hugging a friend, and a friend of Yang’s is a friend of mine, and that automatically makes you a friend of Velvet. She  _ may _ have also felt bad for freezing up on you when you first came to my place. ” Coco’s chain-friendship logic forces another smile to the fair woman’s cheeks.

“Yes, because all it takes to make a friend is knowing their name, and you have nothing to feel bad about Velvet. My vendetta is between the STC and the White Fang… and it’s a justified vendetta on their behalf.” While sarcastic to Coco, the unconditional smile on Weiss’ face shows that Coco’s cracked the heiress’ exterior, at least until her expression drops upon momentarily at the mention of the White Fang.

“Pretty much, we don’t have those fancy political moves and arranged weddings you Atlesians are known for.”

“Coco!” Velvet slaps the beret wearer’s arm. “That’s harsh! You say something like that again and you’re not getting any alcohol tonight.”

“No, no, it’s fine, Velvet.” Weiss still has a natural smile on her face. “After all, arranged marriages are roughly from the same period as her fashion sense.”

“Pfft!” Coco leans into the ropes as she erupts into a second series of laughs. “Alright, I deserved that one. I thought you were ‘okay’ before, but now I know you’re a riot, Schnee!” During Coco’s laughing fit Taiyang approaches the trio.

“Alright, off the apron you two. Yang’s ready to give it another shot.”

“Knock ‘em dead, Schnee.” Coco gives Weiss’s shoulder a slap and Velvet gives a determined nod to Coco’s words.

“You can call me Weiss.” Weiss rolls her eyes and prepares herself for Yang. For some reason, Coco calling her by her last name rolled off their tongue in a manner she enjoyed. Not for the formality, but because it seemed to match Coco’s personality. Either way, perhaps she wouldn’t be so demanding to be on a first-name basis with the cafe owner.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm used to writing in first person... Can't count how many times I've had to go back into a paragraph and change pronouns from first to third person. I'm enjoying the new angle, though! Let me know what you think... I can't say I've seen an 'MMA AU' or whatever this would be considered.


End file.
